Abstract
Lo-ju[2]
(blo ‘gyur) is an ancient Pazap (dpa mdzangs pa) festival
celebrated every three years across the villages of Shar valley in
Wangduephodrang. This study focuses primarily on its Chungsekha version.
This
ritual of propitiating the Dra-lha (dgra
lha)[3]
is conducted for the wellbeing of the Shar community and the nation at
large by invoking and appeasing the pantheon of Drukpa protective deities in the
martial traditions of the yore. At a glance though, it would seem like a
throwback into a warlike past with an enactment of a battle scene by the
village pazaps.
An
in-depth analysis reveals this to be a show of faith, courage and battle
preparedness which, by default, is a natural deterrent against possible
hostilities. An attempt has been made to bear a historical perspective on this
tradition which would otherwise seem like an odd cross between vainglorious
machismo, anachronistic extravaganza and mindless superstition.[4]
The
article is based on manuscript of the rituals, hagiography of eminent Drukpa
(‘brug pa) hierarchs and other socio-political publications though none of them
directly relate to the actual rationale and period of the festival’s
institution. So, this work is primarily a heuristic recreation of the festival
based on stray references found in these sources that are appropriately
corroborated with existing myths, legends and other grapevines.
A Historical Perspective
The
peace and prosperity of Bhutan today has been wrought upon endless spate of
hostilities that was characteristic of the eons gone by. The country was a
medley of fiefdoms ruled by minor lords who were often at loggerheads with each
other. Among the first to launch a process of enduring peace and unity was the
vanguard of the Drukpa order, Phajo Drugom Zhigpo (Pha-jo ‘brug-sgom zhig-po,
1179-1247), popularly known as Tonden Phajo (stong ldan pha-jo) by the
Bhutanese. From his seat in Tibet, Lam Phajo arrived in Bhutan at the age of
forty in the year 1218. He came to Bhutan through Lingzhi and settled in Dodena
from where he systemically began working towards the formation of a Drukpa
state as per the prophecy of Choje Tsangpa Gyarey (gTsang-pa rGya-ras,
1161-1211).
The
process began in earnest by defeating the challenge mounted by his spiritual
adversary Lama Lhakpa (bla ma lha-pa), the then theocratic ruler of the
heartland of Western Bhutan. People who were reeling under his exorbitant taxes
readily defected to Phajo’s fold, effectively breaking his resistance. After
bringing Western Bhutan under the Drukpa sphere of influence, he retreated from
public life and spent his time in ascetic pursuit in Tango. His bequest unto
his sons included lordship over the newly found Drukpa territories with the
added responsibility of its guardianship in the interest of unification, harmony
and prosperity. They were to protect its premises under all circumstances and from
all manners of malignant intents and pursuits.
After
his advent in the year 1616, Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (Zhabs-drung Ngag-dbang
rNam-rgyal, 1594-1651) went about
materializing an ecclesciocratic Drukpa state under the “Dual System of
Religious and Temporal Affairs” (chos-srid
lugs-gnyis) by unifying a stretch that was then essentially
not-any-one-man’s-land into a single nation-state that is now Bhutan. However,
some factions saw this as Drukpa expansionism and put up armed resistance. The
new Drukpa land also faced aggressions from Zhabdrung’s detractors in Tibet who
watched with unease as he worked himself into a position of authority in the
increasingly powerful Bhutanese state to their immediate south. As a matter of
fact, Tibet launched as many as seven attacks on Bhutan in that century alone.
Such
a time must have necessitated the establishment of a Drukpa narrative giving
much needed authority and legitimacy to Zhabdrung’s quest of rallying around a
people to unify and build a nation. Facing up to the odds against this quest
would have incurred nothing less than a divine intervention.
Fortunately,
on both these counts, Zhabdrung would have had to look only as far back as the
life and deeds of the much celebrated Drukpa Patriarch, Tonden Phajo. His
divination of the Drukpa state had the authority and legitimacy of no less than
the prophesies of Tsangpa Gyarey and Guru Rinpoche (Gu-ru Rin-po-che)[5].
The Drukpa state was then inevitable and Zhabdrung was the man to bring it
about, the favoured subject of these saints that he was. The divine protection
of the Drukpa state was readily entrusted in the supreme, albeit symbolic, authority of the Lineage Prince
Wangchuck over the valley of Punakha and all causes emanating from there by the
virtue of his father’s empowered bequest.
Thus,
the pazap traditions of Shar and Wang
can be established as a verbatim ceremonial narrative of these developments in
celebrating the nation building success under the aegis of the ultimate Drukpa
hierarch Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel. Sui generis manuscripts of the pazap ceremonies, analogous across the
Shar and Wang valleys, indicate that Zhabdrung’s nation building quest was
considered a triumphant fruition of Tonden Phajo’s path breaking efforts. The
festival is in itself an articulate narrative of the events leading up to the
formation of the Drukpa state by conquering hostile forces with the aid of the
powerful Dra-lha.
The Pazap Tradition
Punakha
Domchoe (sgrub mchod) was first staged to celebrate Bhutan’s resounding
victory over the invading Tibetan forces in the 17th century and to
propitiate the tutelary deities (dgon po).
It is marked by a three-day extended pazap festival. Pazaps who brandish military gears and combat accessories stage
elaborate battle scenes to the accompaniment of loud trumpets, firecrackers and
war songs. Though it cannot be conclusively established, elders in the villages
argue that the Shar lo-ju is a
provincial extension of the Punakha Domchoe
following the same tradition of pazaps.
Apart
from this rather theatrically ceremonial role, pazaps were an integral part of Bhutan’s security apparatus. Given
the limited resources of the country, Bhutan could not afford to keep a
standing army that could defend itself, much less deter potential aggressors
with its apparent prowess. So, what it did was to set up a corpus of peasant
militias that could be called at short notice to fight. A British mission’s note
cited by Dasho Karma Ura in a paper on perception of national security states
that “the Bhutanese have only six hundred men in pay
as soldiers; but though their government is elective, they hold their lands by
military service, and every man in their country is a soldier when called
upon.” Based upon a heuristic assumption of the tax-paying households, he puts
the number of pazaps available at
around eighteen thousand. Flexibility and cost-effectiveness of a pazap force
compared to the maintenance of an adequately strong standing army would have
contributed to the security of the country by allowing a size of force
disproportionate to the population to be raised, for short periods of time.
Further, when they were not
engaged in repelling the numerous foreign aggressions, the pazaps fought endless skirmishes between opposing clans that became
a hallmark of the period which marked the decadence of Zhabdrung’s dual system,
two centuries’ after its establishment, and the emergence of the Wangchuck
dynasty.
Pazap ceremonies
that were held in the Dzongs and the provinces were as much a ritual of peace
as they were a show of strength and preparedness to deter aggression. Practices
and performances of battle scenes were ideal training grounds for village men,
young and old alike, who were introduced into the martial tradition. To this
day, becoming lo-ju pazap is a rite
of passage that makes men out of boys. Thus, the pazaps are hailed as a benevolent warrior clan that is in steadfast
tutelary of its adherents.
Shar
Da Gay: The Eight Great Valleys of Shar
Surviving
tax records from the Zhabdrung’s time show Shar to be a major rice-producing
province. Favourable landscape, fertile soil and salubrious clime made Shar the
famous granary of multiple cereals enabling it to become the lifeline of the
Bhutanese state in the years when it chose to follow a minimal trade policy.
At
a time when state rewards were based on merit, Shar was favourably placed on
the pecking order. A record of the investiture celebration of Zhabdrung Jigme
Dragpa I (zhabs-drung Jigs med grags pa, 1725-1761) in 1747 shows that in the Mang ‘gyed (cash gifts offered by the
Desi to his subjects proportionate to their tax status), a large chunk of the matams handed out were for the
tax-paying households of the prefecture of Wangdue Phodrang. This was in
consonance with the power vested in the Dzongpon of Wangdue Phodrang who was a
member of the six member cabinet in Zhabdrung’s Choe-syid Lu-nyi state. The Wangdue Dzongpon’s tax contribution alone
was comparable to the regional prefects called Poenlop whose jurisdictions were several districts and the Duar
protectorates clubbed together.
It
was natural then that in the decadent years when strives between Dzong
officials vying for supremacy threatened to tear the country apart, the Wangdue
Dzongpon (rDzong dpon) invariably got involved in them. One could like or
despise him, but one thing was sure, he could not be ignored. This might
explain why the Shar people are fond of strutting their swords, their archery
prowess and continue to appease the Dra-lha
even when one would think that peace is finally home.
Zhabdrung
Ngawang Namgyel was always favourably disposed to his Shar adherents. Fearing
for the safety of the Ranjung Khasarpani (the self-emanated image of Chenrigzi)
at the height of the Tibetan hostilities, he took refuge in the safety of the
Shar villages. Later he spent many years traveling between his Centre in
Punakha and Wangduephodrang where he personally conceived and initiated the
construction of the Dzong at the crossroad of the East and West. The people
were worthy hosts during these times of trials, tribulations and subsequent
celebrations, and thus, were rewarded with high honours and rights in his
political set-up.
Organization of Lo-ju
Lo-ju is an extensive
exercise of communal bond in Chungsekha. All the households come together to
organize the event and contribute in varied capacities towards its successful
conduct. By the relatively frugal rural standards, the two-day festival requires
a substantial assortment of material and human resources. Eighteen of the
twenty households in Chungsekha make up an eighteen-men pazap force while the remaining two households put in utility
services. Each household contributes two drey[6]
of rice, 1 kilogram of meat, 750 grams of butter, a bucket of banchang[7]
and a bottle of ara[8]
towards a grand feast for the pazaps.
The
six original households of Chungsekha take turns to host the pazaps every lo-ju year as the chief patron.
The patron mobilizes village resources and is responsible for the
collection of the various feast ingredients. Apart from preparing the main
feast, an endless stream of wine and butter tea must be served for the pazaps throughout the day by the host.
The host also acts as the patron of the paow
(dpa ‘bo) and neljorma (rnal ‘byor ma),
the male and female shaman respectively, although their fees are collectively
borne. They are separately entertained during their three-day stay in the
community by the host. As the organizer and the main focal person, the host
will be called upon to address other organizational niceties whenever they come
up.
Supported
by the tshogs-pa[9],
spyi dpon[10]
and other elders, the host will call for the start of preparation and practice
at least five days prior to the day of the rehearsal. The pazaps train in choreographed sequence of martial drills and
declamation of war songs and ritual librettos every evening on the temple lawn
as the organizers discuss nuances of the organization.
The
organization of the lo-ju has assumed
an added significance as an event that brings the whole of Chungsekha together.
Chungsebs have caught on with the trend of outward migration too. Most
Chungsebs live and work in urban centers today effectively severing a time-honoured
bond. Therefore, the festival is a
galvanizing force providing an occasion for people to come together, renew old
ties and work towards communal harmony.
Primus Inter Pares: Ceremonial Pazap Leaders
There are four ceremonial leaders of the pazaps who are entitled to a double
serving of meat and gifts (traditionally an offering of silk scarves or dar and possibly, money). They are
collectively called Dhar-thob (dar thob) or Nyi-kel-ma (gnyis skal ma). The primus inter pares, or first among
equals is the Dar-pon (dar dpon) who is the symbolic commander of the
force. The Dar-pon performs the bey[11].
Two Yang-pon (dbyang dpon) serve as his Next-in-Command and is responsible for
singing paeans of the various deities protecting the advancing pazaps unit. Traditionally, three
leading households held these symbolic positions as a reciprocation of their
contributions towards village welfare. These ceremonial leaders are supposed to
be the subjects of special favours from the dra-lha
and of late, competition for these posts have become a bone of
contention.
The
fourth and the last position in this category is the paow who leads the dra-lha propitiation
ritual as the precentor. Contrary to the popular usage of the word paow to denote a possessed shaman, a paow in this context is an adept performer of considerable acumen who can reel off
monumental volumes of excerpts from hagiographical texts and colloquial verses.
For this reason, the position is not claimed by traditional rights and is
instead offered to a proven maestro.
Based
on the performing abilities, another pazap
is nominated for the rendition of ley-ma[12].
As a minstrel in the pazap unit, he must show good heart and a sense
humour to maintain the spirit of the unit through a hectic day’s ceremonies.
However, he does not belong to the dhar-thob
category. Instead, he solicits alms at the end of the ceremonies. At least
two shamans render their services of divine augury and the exorcising of
malignant spirits for a stipulated fee. These priests with the capacity of
being possessed by the Dra-lha are
usually hired from other villages as they are unavailable locally in
Chungsekha.
The Day of the Rehearsal
On
the day of the Bhutanese winter solstice (ngin-log)
every three year, people of Chungsekha converge on the lawn of its village
temple for the first of the two days of
lo-ju, marking a rehearsal of sorts. Dressed in their best clothes, they
sample an array of Shar’s culinary delicacies and watch as the pazaps emerge from the inner sanctums of
the village lhakhang and strut across its lawn singing paeans of the various
protector deities, both national and natal. Pazaps, mostly young boys and some
village elders put up a medieval martial ceremony. Pazaps wear traditional robes perfectly fitted with silk scarves
reminiscent of medieval battle outfits. They flaunt traditional Bhutanese
swords which are symbol of a hero. After offerings of wine, the pazaps perform the ritual of
propitiating the Dra-lha. A vigorous
martial drill is staged to the rhythm of the paow’s declamation of excerpts from Phajo’s biography punctuated
with folk verses. An unmistakable air of combat pervades the hamlet as pazaps let out heart wrenching war cries
and the paow’s fiery narrative
becomes increasingly warlike to browbeat the evil spirits into submitting
before the Dra-lha’s wrath.
Ceremonial Proceedings for the
Day
The
second day’s (on which the actual propitiation takes place) proceedings start
at the break of dawn and ends late in the evening after the host holds a
reception for the pazaps and
everybody else in the community amidst much fanfare. Choicest foods and drinks
are served all along in time honoured tradition as the pazaps march through the village. This tradition of troops being
felicitated on their way is best illustrated in the acclaimed ballad of one of
Shar’s famous sons, Pemi Tshewang Tashi whose eastbound detachment is received
ceremoniously at various points on the road to Trongsa.
Setting
off from the Village
As
the dawn break on Chungsekha the day after Nyin-lo,
eighteen pazaps are ceremoniously
sent off by their respective patrons after being subjected to a fumigation
ritual with a combination of holy fire, smoke and water. They then storm the piece of ground at the base
of an old cypress tree believed to be the offshoot of Lam Drukpa Kuenley’s (blam
‘brug pa kun legs 1455-1529) walking stick who had come to visit Chungsey Azhi
Gyalzom (khung se a zhe rgyal ‘dzom). They are greeted by a shaman who would
then go on to augur each of the eighteen patrons’ fortune. The pazaps leave the shaman as he is
possessed by his deity’s spirit and leave for an hour’s hike up a steep
hillside to the Dargay Goenpa (dar rgyal dgon pa) monastery.
Blessed
Formation from the Goenkhang
Around
1531, Tenpai Gyaltshen (bstan pai rgyal mtshan, 1506-1538), the son of Lam
Ngawang Chogyal (blam ngagd bhang chos rgyal, 1465-1540) built a lhakhang called Dargay Goenpa (dar rgyal
dgon pa) on a hill overlooking the three great valleys which is revered as the
seat of Lung Sup Dorje Legpa (lung srung rdorje legs pa). He is the tutelary
deity of Chungsekha, Domkha and Wangpoenkha. The pazaps come to pay their homage and seek his protection. There is a
more mundane reason for this visit too. The battle helmet and the Tsendar (the ceremonial insignia of the
deities) of the pazaps are kept in
the Goenkhang of the Goenpa. The pazaps perform a rite called the pazapoi chog-ga and offer gifts and khaddar (kha dar). The Dhar-pon
dons the ceremonial hat, heave the tsendar
(btsan dar) over his shoulder and
perform a bey invoking the Patriarch Lung-sup.
The
pazaps then triumphantly leave the lhakhang in battle formation with the
two Yang-pon singing paeans offering
their unequivocal allegiance to the Drukpa protective deities. The principal
monk of the Goenpa host a marchang (wine ceremony). One of the two
yang-pon recites the chang-choe (chang mchod) verse (a wine
libation hymn)[13].
In
the ceremony, the important deities invoked are Mahakala and Mahakali, the
guardian deities of Bhutan. The glorious teacher, the four assemblies of
deities, the Daka and Dakanis of the three worlds, the dweller of the carnal
grounds and the guardians of four directions are also significantly mentioned
in the prayer. Beside the prayer is an appeasement of the deities residing in
strategic locations across the country.
The
Battle Procession of the Pazaps
After
the hike down to the village, the pazaps
take a rest just as they come in sight of the first house. A marchang (mar chang) ceremony is performed followed by a round of bey and ley-ma. After they have sorted out their outfits and accessories,
the long battle march to the ceremonial ground in the heart of the village
begins. At the vanguard, the two Yang-pon
lead signing paeans while the rank and file reciprocate, jubilantly singing
their refrain in unison. With drawn sword and the tsendar heaved over his shoulder, the Dhar-pon pulls along the other pazaps
in a battle parade. At the rear of the pazaps,
the minstrel follows boisterously holding aloft a quiver. Two bje-pai paow (byis pa’i dpa’bo) perform with gusto.
They
are received on entrance by the two shamans, their patrons and other members of
the community with lowered kabneys. They
stop en route for offers of wine and food by the patrons of households falling
along the way[14].
They reciprocate by way of marchang ceremonies,
bey (rbad) and ley-ma (gleng ma), symbolically showering bountiful fortune and protection upon
these patrons.
Taking
Charge of the Hamlet
As
noon approaches, the pazaps finally
manoeuvre their way through the winding village footpath flanked by long lines
of well-wishers and patrons who besieged them with their oblations. The pazaps are received upon reaching the lhakhang by monks and other
functionaries in a ceremony called chibdrel
(chibs gral). As exhilarating sounds of religious drums, cymbals and trumpets
mixed with jubilant exclamations rent the air, the pazaps symbolically take charge of the village and its people as
their unequivocal guardians. The pazaps circumambulate
the lhakhang thrice as they keep up
the jubilant paeans for grace and protection. They then perform another marchang ceremony hosted by the main
patron of the day. A bey and a ley-ma are performed. Depending upon the
availability of time, some more bey and
ley-ma are performed by the other pazaps followed by some rounds of joyous
dances.
Midday
Hiatus and Lunch
At
around midday, the pazaps break for
the feast in the patron’s house. The seating arrangement reflects the symbolic
hierarchy of the pazap order. The Dhar-pon sits at the head on a raised
seat. The two Yang-pon flank him on
either sides. The paow seats next to
one of the yang-pon and the rest of
the pazaps complete the arrangement
by sitting in two rows. The serving follows the traditional Bhutanese
etiquette. The pazaps are served
traditional nutriments including rice, vegetables, tea, beef and other meat
servings. The dhar-thobs receive
double servings of pork slices befitting their appellation of Nyi-kelma[15].
Phallic
Power
After a hearty meal, the pazaps go to a spot famous for its panoramic view and gentle
breeze. They straighten their clothes and fix their accessories after all the
excitable performances. The afternoon’s ceremonies begin with the adorning of a
phallus, the symbol of virility and fertile prowess usually associated with
Wangchu Chengpo (dbang phyug cheng po). Pazaps
are supposed to be an enlightened warrior clan above the mundane emotions
of this world like greed, prejudice, sloth, treachery, insecurity, attachment,
shame, et al. Being able to parade a brazen penile projection in a crowd of
close relatives reinforce their capacity for victory. The Wangchu Chengpo, as
the carved phallus is reverently called, is attached to a bamboo cot and
covered in silk scarves. It is carried aloft by young boys ahead of the
procession of pazaps. The pazaps move in for the final assault of
the day on the back of the phallic power as paeans entrusting their victory to
the divine protectors of the Drukpa order are sung.
Shar’s
Beauty Pageant
To
receive the heroic warriors, young women and girls line up the pathway bearing
rejuvenating wine and rice snacks called sho.
The contrast is striking as the gallant pazaps
meet the fine ladies. The ladies offer the men their aliments as the men
oblige by reciprocal gifts of money and small tokens, usually beetle nuts. If lo-ju is a rite of passage for young
boys into virile adulthood, it is an occasion for the young ladies to sashay
their budding beauties and announce their coming of age. Loving mothers deftly
adorn their daughters with fine silk materials and precious family heirlooms
because at stake is the fame of lay-key (legs skyel) which effectively makes a
woman the toast of the valley.
Tokens of Appreciation
The
pazaps are the symbolic defense
mechanism of the community in the proud tradition of the Drukpa warriors. They
invoke and appease the deities with their prowess and gallantry. For these
reasons, the grateful community felicitates its heroes with monetary token of
appreciation called dhar. The ceremonial
leaders called the dhar-thobs are
entitled to receive dhar individually
while the general pazaps receive the dhar collectively. It often happens that
the people who go to offer the dhar have their small changes snatched
away by the cheeky pazaps who would
then thank them profusely by way of placating.
Invoking
the Dra-lha: The Narrative[16]
After
the dhar ceremony, the battle of
exorcising the malignant spirit by invoking the powerful Warrior Deity begins
in earnest. The pazaps let out
terrifying war cries and a firework ensues as the dra-lha is invoked. The paow takes
centre stage as the pazaps ceremoniously
circumambulate the ground around the grand cypress. A prowling rhythm is set as
the paow begins his exuberant
declamation of the dra-lha script.
The
propitiation begins by describing the dra-lha.
He is benign in his outlook, amicable in disposition and gracious to his
adherents as he is a Bodhisattva incarnate. He is the son of the triumphant
Drukpa order and is its professed protector. The order of Drukpa hierarchs are then
enumerated in some details and the south-bound mount of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel is mentioned[17]. In
his wrathful form though, which he can assume on provocation of his self and
the adherents under his protection, he can unleash untold destruction on the
offenders. He is deadly to his foes as his prowess stands unmatched.
Then
the paow goes on to describe the
birth of the dra-lha which made the
Drukpa destiny possible. At this point, the declamation resonates with episodes
from the life of the almighty Tonden Phajo. He came to the southern ravenous land
of four passages to fulfill the destiny of the Drukpa state and bring order in
the fractious land. Upon his advent, he systematically instituted the Drukpa
order by winning over the people with his benevolence even as he prevailed over
his enemies. To perpetuate the lineage of the Drukpa holders, he copulated with
his extraordinarily gifted consort Sonam Palden from the valley of Wang. The
process is described in graphic details adding a blatantly bawdy folk element
to a saintly biography.
The
narrative at this point dwell on subjects that are usually considered taboos. The
narrative points to the worldly preoccupation of Tonden Phajo and how he is
accosted for it by the people who naturally see his sensual engagements as going
against his spiritual ideals. On his parts, Phajo defends himself by arguing
the need to spread the Drukpa race, in unabashed terms. He says that to beget a
great progeny, one needs great appetite and prowess at intercourse, and he got just those qualities[18].
Of
the seven sons born to Phajo by Sonam Palden, only four went on to prove their
Bodhisattva mettle. The Dra-lha is
thus born. He is identified as the
Lineage Prince Wangchuck who was entrusted with the tutelary of the Wang,
Punakha and Shar valleys as their combined spiritual and temporal head. Thus in
times of need, Prince Wangchuck is defied and called upon to come as the dra-lha and asked to take charge of the pazaps fighting to defend and propagate
the cause of the Drukpa establishments.
As
the dra-lha is symbolically invoked,
he is made oblations of wine, water, flour and meat of the finest vintage. The
declamation goes into great details describing how each of these offerings are
prepared with diligence, dexterity and absolute good fate. They are nourishments
befitting the highest order. Then the dra-lha
symbolically dawns on the ground and the assault begins on the malignant
forces impinging upon the Drukpa order and the village of Shar Chungsekha.
Exorcising
the (Malignant) Spirit
The
paow begins with an offer of
magnanimous pardon for anybody willing to submit before the wrath of the dra-lha. With his pure scarf, he then
symbolically brings to bear the full force of the dra-lha on those still harbouring evil intents and designs against
the Drukpa order and the hamlet of Shar Chungsekha. At around this time in the narrative, the spirit of the dra-lha
possesses the shaman and he breaks
into the pazap rank. As the tension
heightens, the prowl of the pazaps give
way to a full-blooded assault drill following the paow’s fiery elocution of the dra-lha’s
strong-arm strategies. A virtual battle pervades as the paow exorcises every potentially
malignant source. Flashing swords, piercing war cries, jubilant exclamations
and fireworks rent the air.
The
possessed shaman and the paow break
the line and charge towards the fringe end of the village in pursuit of the
evil spirit that is by now in full flight. A barrage of people prevent these
men from self-annihilation and hold them back ceremoniously in the nick of
time. As some sense of order is restored, a rice effigy symbolizing all that is
evil is placed at the feet of the shaman. Then the final rite begins by the
shaman commanding the fleeing evil
not to bother the community and the Drukpa
order again. He says that the force of the Drukpa guardians blessed by the
triple gem, Buddha, Sangha and Dharma will level the mountains and churn the
ocean should ever such a need arise, effectively deterring any potential
designs in the future. With a swift kick, the effigy is floored and the pazaps pounce on it in a coup de grace.
A final bey is performed by the dhar-pon who assigns the malignant
spirit to the limits of the world where it will be safely sequestered,
browbeaten as it is by this show of strength.
Retaining
the Bounty of the Ceremony
The
jubilant pazaps and the community
then prepare for the celebratory reception at the house of the chief patron.
The boys carry the Wangchuk Chengpo as the booty of the day’s efforts and take
the lead on the march back to the house. The women sing the song of joyous
fruition called Tashi Leg-pay (bkra shis legs pas) and follow suit. The pazaps
gloat over their day’s exploits and sing songs of joyous gratitude with prayers
for enduring peace and prosperity[19].
As
the women continue their cheerful songs and dances, the men prepare to receive
the talismanic Wangchuck Chengpo into the house. Much like the ceremony of zur chen elevation for a newly
constructed house, the Wangchuck Chengpo is tethered to a rope and pulled through
the oriel of the altar room to the accompaniment of its paeans. The pazaps are hierarchically seated in the
room and felicitated with wine, tea and other aliments. The ceremonial
headgears of the pazaps are then presented to a member of the household as a
token of their appreciation for a period of three days. The tsendar is also kept in the safekeeping
of the patron. The patron thus effectively reaps the bounty of the festival. On the fourth day, the tsendar is returned to the Goenkhang (mgon khang) and the
patrons of the pazaps take back the
headgears. This tradition of lavishing bounties on the patron may be an
indication of the appreciation and gratitude that the community had for the
patron in a hard pressed economy. The patron receives the fortune of peace,
stability and prosperity for the whole community.
Expunged Existence: A History of
Poor Documentation and Scholarship
It
is almost impossible to establish conclusively when the festival of lo-ju came into existence. There is no
record to that effect. Inferences drawn from a manuscript of the rituals that
had been appropriately corroborated by oral sources suggest that the lo-ju must have been established around
the same time as the Punakha Domchoe, the
more illustrious of the two pazap festivals.
Many aspects of the lo-ju are based
directly on the Domchoe and the Dra-lha propitiation ritual is the same
as the one conducted in the Punakha and Thimphu Dzongs.
Punakha
Domchoe and the Dra-lha propitiation ceremony are believed to have been instituted
as a celebration of Zhabdrung’s victory against the Tibetan aggressors and
other internal factions based on verbatim accounts of the series of battles and
the grand invocations of the protective deities. Along with the pazaps of the eight great regions of
Wang, the Shar people contributed to the force raised by the Zhabdrung in
ensuring the Drukpa triumph. While the people of Wang must have led the
celebration of the Drubchen as they
were the natives of the Punakha region, the Shar people must have replicated
the national celebration across their villages with their own version of the
ritual.
These
festivals are essentially folk in nature unlike the more ecclesiastical Tsechu (tshes bcu) that is a largely monastic exercise. At a time when
literacy was low among the lay population, it could possibly have happened that
the need for proper documentation of this important historical development must
have been overlooked. Like every folk pursuit, a set of traditions passed down
the generations must have served for the need of paper works. Even for the Drubchen which has been an important
national event, the documentation is rather poor. Apart from a precept guiding
the pazap code of conduct, hardly any
other record of significance are available today, notwithstanding some stray
references. Even though the Dra-lha propitiation
is an artistic mix of colloquial verses and hagiographical accounts, a standard
text has not been maintained. Its survival hinged on the ingenuity of the paows to be able to recite them by heart
and pass them onto apprentices from succeeding generations.
The
apparent lack of archival source makes it impossible to standardize the
spelling of the ceremony, named and pronounced in different ways across
different villages. It is variedly called Lo-ju
(blo ‘gyur), Shar gi Lo-chok (shar gyi
glog skyor) and in some instances, Bon-kor. Lo-ju (the Chungsekha version)
would probably mean an articulate expression of a deep-seated consciousness,
commonly associated with the people of Shar who are attributed with the
authorship of the two best known ballads in the national language Dzongkha.
This would imply that the ceremony is an articulate colloquial expression of
thanksgiving and propitiation following the victory of Zhabdrung. This would seem
to fit in with the argument that Lo-ju is
a national narrative of Zhabdrung’s state formation based on supposed divination
of Phajo and the other great Drukpa Hierarchs.
If
we take the standard pronunciation as lo-chok,
as is the case elsewhere in Shar
region, then it would imply a protective enclosure safeguarding a people, place
or an entity. This would mean that it is an appeasement ritual for the tutelary
of a particular region or a nation, in this instance of the Shar valley and the
nation of the Drukpas. Bon-kor with
its Bon connotations may seem out of place and probably just an aberration as
the narrative itself is about the Drukpa order. However, the concept of the Dra-lha is itself borrowed and adapted
from the Bon naturalist tradition, as are many traditions in Buddhism including
the customary death rituals. It seems then that the festival is essentially Bon[20],
though the narrative and its format have been adapted to form a Drukpa
expression of nation formation by creating and invoking deified spiritual
protectors who symbolically safeguard the people caught in issues of survival
and legitimization.
While
the two former appellations would suggest that it is a ceremony of celebration,
gratitude and appeasement, we may never know what the exponents of the festival
actually had on their minds. Some even suggest the festival might have been
called lue-tor after the ritual of casting
a sacrificial ritual cake called lue. The
varying names of this festival arise from onomatopoeic corruptions of the original
name that is unfortunately lost to us. There exists a vast gap between the well
versed exponents who articulated the Drukpa epoch in creative ceremonial
narratives and their ill-informed descendents who hang on to the tradition more
out of habit than for a true appreciation of its intrinsic wisdoms.
What does the future hold?
In a nihilistic world where too often things are
numerated on their monetary value alone, people may eventually decide to
sidestep this festival as a detritus of an arcane past that is anachronistic at
best and redundant at worst. Lack of a concerted preservation effort has
already made the ceremony an exotic and arcane pursuit. It prevents us from
seeing the festival as an extension of a watershed moment in our history when
Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel successfully overcame the challenges of unification
and formed the Drukyul (Land of the Drukpas).
Only
a cursive manuscript of the ceremony survives today. Much of the original
expertise on scriptures and choreography hangs on the senile acumen of a few
stalwarts who traditionally depended on the availability of ready apprentices
willing to partake of their reservoir of knowledge as a vehicle of
transmission. This has naturally led to an adulteration of the rituals by
ill-informed people who make shoddy work of them. The text of the dra-lha propitiation, with an artistic
mix of colloquial expressions and versified historical accounts, runs into
hundreds of pages and could easily take upwards of five hours to be fully
recited. Today the paows render them
ineffectually in a couple of hours.
The
conduct of the lo-ju depended on an
abiding communal bond along traditional division of responsibilities and
reciprocal entitlements. However, with the introduction of modern development
and an accompanying proliferation of foreign influences, organization along
traditional lines is becoming difficult. The organization of the 2011 edition
of lo-ju hit rough weathers when
disputes ensued between the organizers. They could not agree on a few
organizational niceties, with the nomination of the candidates for the ceremonial
positions being chief among them. Traditionally, three of the four ceremonial
posts, a Dar-pon and two Yang-pons, were held by three leading
households as a reciprocation of their contribution to village welfare.
In
recent times, some segments of people have challenged this tradition and wanted
to be able to partake of these posts for the blessing and fame that come with
them, real or perceived. On the other hand, the households who hold these
traditional rights are unwilling to relinquish them for the contributions that
their ancestors made. Rifts are beginning to show and they are made worse by
the fact that the traditional working relations are beginning to disintegrate
in the face of people leaving their ancestral homes and with it, their values.
Conclusion
For
umpteen generations, people of Chungsekha (as with every person in the great
regions of Shar and Wang) would look forward to the year of the Lo-ju when they would congregate amidst
much fanfare and festivity on the lawn outside their village temple to
celebrate the formation of the Drukpa state and the proud tradition of the pazaps who helped in bringing it about.
Apart from being an occasion to invoke the protection of the pantheon of Drukpa
deities for the perpetuation of peace and prosperity, the festival is an
expression of gratitude where it is due. At a stretch, it is also a show of
strength and preparedness against hostile designs and pursuits, symbolic, as
well as, real.
Although,
this paper cannot conclusively establish the exact year of the festival’s institution,
it does manage to suggest that the lo-ju was
an extension of Zhabdrung’s state building process that included, but not limited to, the inculcation of a sense of
national identity in the Bhutanese psyche. From the ceremonial social order of Zhugdrel Phunsum Tshogpa, to the
national code of etiquette Driglam Namzha
and the other socio-religious landmarks like Tsechu and Domchoe, Zhabdrung
has entrenched traditions of the high and popular culture in our society which
went a long way in strengthening the Bhutanese nation and its sovereignty. Lo-ju celebrates the formation of these
epochs in our evolution as a nation.
Lo-ju is a festival for
peace to ward off all manners of misfortunes leading to social unrest. For a
nation fixated on the tutelary of its deities, lo-ju serves to fill a special spiritual need. It gives us the
strength of knowing that our fates are in the safe hands of a power higher than
ourselves. Our lives will continue to revolve around the ritual prayers of lo-ju so long as we continue to believe
in the wisdom and grace of our forefathers to keep us secure in our homeland.
Even in the unlikely event of turbulence and warfare, the people will be better
off with the martial exposure of lo-ju.
The
rationale for the institution of the festival continues to hold good to this
day. Firstly, it is the need to keep unrest at bay. Then it is the need to be
prepared should such a situation arise. If anything, there is a need to
strengthen this security masterstroke. For if maintaining a huge standing army
was difficult in the past, it is no easier now with our economic potential
still largely unrealized. The pragmatism and efficacy of the pazap force whose tradition has been
kept alive in this festival will be an answer to much of our security needs in
the future.
References
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don
grub zhes pas sa mo lug lor shar mtsho brgyad kyi khral zhing [ ]khra[l] khyim
gyi deb gter gsal ba'i me long zhes bya ba bzhugs so//
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End Notes
[2] There are many
colloquial terminologies for the festival though unfortunately how it was
originally referred to as is now lost to us through verbal corruption due to a
dearth of standard documentation.
[3] A ferocious protector
(who as the narrative proclaims, likes the loud sound of warlike exclamations
and howls) which in this case seems to be the deified spirit of Prince
Wangchuck on whom was bestowed the dual protectorship of the religious and
secular wellbeing of the Punakha valley where the Drukpa nationhood originated
and to whom the people of Shar subscribed to after he miraculously survived the
ordeal of being cast away in the Wangchhu river by Phajo as an authentication
of his extraordinary being.
[4] It must be stated
here though that this writing is a sincere effort on the part of an insider
keen on preserving and, possibly, perpetuating a legacy. As such, the work may
be biased by the author’s partiality for his own root, people and culture.
Rigorous scholarly standards have been sidestepped in favour of a more
literarily ingenious recreation, with due glorification thrown in for good
measure, of a heritage poor on scholarship and tottering on the brink of an
ungainly disintegration.
[5] Leadership in Bhutan
is usually tied and linked by prophecies and so tracing ancestry and descent
from traditional authority of power is a common practice. While depicting the highest source of influence that Phajo, pioneer of the Drukpa tradition, and his
numerous scions had become, Yonten
Dargay and Sorensen P.K. purport that ‘For Zhabs-drung Ngag-dbang rnam-rgyal,
when forced to flee Central Tibet in the beginning of the 17th century, it was obvious to seek refuge in
this southern stronghold and haven of the ‘Brug-pas and eventually bring the
whole of the Southern Land of the Four Approaches under his sway in the years
ahead.’ Alternatively, Michael Aris also argues that
“It is clear, then, that powerful emotions can be unleashed in Bhutanese
society when precedents and justifications are invoked in favour of violent means, ritual or otherwise,
to protect the state from perceived dangers. These same emotions were at
work in fostering political unity in the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries…”
[6] A traditional measurement
unit that is roughly 1¼ Kg.
[7] A seasoned rice wine.
[8] A strong rice brewed
spirit.
[9] The lowest rung of
grass root leader whose office is preserved in the new administrative set-up of
democracy.
[10] Unpaid village
messenger and utility personnel whose post is filled on rotation basis due to
the hardship involved.
[11] Bey (rbad) is a type of war dance performed with drawn swords and
ferocity, invoking the protection of a particular deity by describing aspects
of him in martial terms.
[12]
Ley-ma (glen-ma) is a
particular type of ceremonial folk verse sung in glorification of the village
and its deities.
[13] Although the Chang-choe ceremony is widely performed,
the text of the lo-ju version is
different and is called bje-pai
chang-choe (byis pa’i chang mchod),
literally a young man’s verse. It is a narrative expressing a man’s faith in
the tutelary of his deities and his confident outlook on his own prowess and
value as a man, ready and able to serve a righteous cause.
[14] The epicurean taste
for fine tea and wine is a fact that is illustrated best by Pemi Tshewang Tashi
and his troops who show much appreciation for the hospitality of their
well-wishers while a sense of disgust overwhelm them when they are made no such
oblations as the fateful battle draws close.
[15] Traditionally
officials in the court and state services were differentiated by the size of
their servings during formal meals with the seniors receiving the most.
Usually, commanders receive double servings, a tradition still preserved in
this ceremony.
[16] The narrative on the
formation of the Drukpa order is a fine blend of classical and colloquial
Dzongkha.
[17] This reference not
only shows that the festival was a visionary handiwork of Zhabdrung and/or his adherents, but it also goes on to implicate that Zhabdrung’s grand design
and adventures in the Southern Land as a fulfillment of a destiny with the able
aid of his retinue of deities and the dra-lha
that will be subsequently born for this very purpose in the course of the
narrative.
[18] The Dra-lha must be conceived and born. For
that purpose, a worthy parents must be besieged. Thus, the Dra-lha is
born to Tonden Phajo and his consort Sonam Palden. The narrative indentifies
the child born thus as the persuasive Prince Wangchuck who is ultimately
appointed as the combined lama and administrator of the Punakha region.
[19] The Ley-so as the paeans are called, here,
offers thanksgiving to the seat of Zhabdrung in Punakha. This not only
establish Lo-ju as a post Zhabdrung
ritual but also as an extension of his deeds. The Ley-so are beautiful verses in praise of the Drukpa hierarchs. At
one point, these verses were
standardized across the valleys of Shar and Wang. However, much of the
standards are lost now as no text exists.
[20] The name Bon-kor is thus suggestive of the origin
of the festival in the Bon tradition of invoking Dra-lha as a living entity which becomes an object of respect and
refuge. The long colloquial segment on the sacrificial animal and offering of
the various parts of its anatomy can be seen as remnants of the animist belief.
@ densore
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